


De Noite Ardo

by RushAndTomatoJuice



Series: Lucifer Bingo 2019 [2]
Category: Lucifer (TV)
Genre: F/M, Friends With Benefits, Lucifer Bingo 2019, Mostly Fluff, Somewhat established relationship, because why not, luci is a sweet, prompt: fuckbuddies, with some angst
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2019-05-24
Updated: 2019-05-24
Packaged: 2020-03-13 10:02:54
Rating: Mature
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 10,697
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/18938695
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/RushAndTomatoJuice/pseuds/RushAndTomatoJuice
Summary: “Lucifer.” Her voice sounded as choked as his had only minutes ago. He was compelled to raise his eyes to meet hers, and he did so warily.One look at her and he knew they were doomed. He knew he’d always been weak, especially when it came to his desires. But he was enthralled with the way her eyes turned the darkest of blues in the moonlight, and this yearning he felt inside him overflowed and reached out to her. Now, he could only hope she’d forgive him in the morning.Round Two of Lucifer Bingo 2019





	De Noite Ardo

**Author's Note:**

> TITLE TRANSLATION: At Night I Burn
> 
> The title comes from a poem by Vinicius de Moraes called Poética
> 
> For the Lucifer Bingo 2019  
> Prompt: fuckbuddies
> 
> This has not been betaed
> 
> Disclaimer: I own nothing but the plot

The sirens were making it hard for him to focus on the reality surrounding him. Blue and red lights from the police cars tinged the moist brick walls of the building in monotone colors. The colors and the sirens that were supposed to sign it was alright now, the bad guy had been caught, were only making him sick to the stomach, so loud and bright they seemed.

Lucifer remembered the Detective telling him after a particular difficult case a few months before that they couldn’t close all of them, that sometimes the criminals would eventually be two steps ahead of them. That they wouldn’t be able to save all lives. And deep down he knew it was true, but this was the one they couldn’t have failed.

By the time the case was closed, all he would be able to remember would be how blinding the red and blue lights had seemed, the Detective’s hands shaking with shame in the dark building, and the rage that was trying to eat him alive.

Lucifer didn’t dare walk back inside. He couldn’t face the victim – just a girl barely out of high school – brutally murdered they’d disappointed. He knew they wouldn’t be able to get to them all in time, but they should have saved this one.

Now, he could barely make out the Detective pushing him away from the building towards her car. Lucifer hadn’t seen her since she’d stopped him from dismembering their murderer to make him suffer the same way he’d made the girl. He’d been so consumed by his rage he could barely keep his glamour under control, but even amidst all his fury, he’d still been able to hear her call his name. 

Her blue eyes glistening with unshed tears had stared at the bottom of his soul, and he couldn’t remember feeling that vulnerable and understood at the same time is such a long time. He’d dropped the scumbag and marched out of there without looking back, unable to face his failure for another second.

Now, the Detective was leading him to her car, but she seemed unable to look him in the eye. Lucifer felt the same. If he gazed into her eyes and saw the same mess of feelings that was dragging him down, he would crumble and he wasn’t sure he’d be able to put himself together.

They both entered the car without a word. It was only when she’d parked outside Lux that Lucifer dared to look at her. The Detective’s eyes unsurely drifted up to meet his, and the next he knew, they were riding the elevator up to his penthouse.

They walked in in silence, Lucifer heading straight to the bar and filling two glasses. He gathered them and the scotch bottle and moved to sit by her side on the couch. The Detective and he shared a couple drinks before he felt he’d suffocate in this tension between them.

“I-” Lucifer choked out, unsure of what to say, but unable to stay quiet for longer. He looked up at her to see her pain evident on her features. It made him urge to hold her, or support her, or just be with her, so long as she wouldn’t have to feel this anymore. “I just-” He cut himself again, looking away frustrated.

“I know.” Her voice was low as she reached her hand to rest above his where it was holding his glass a tad too tight for it not to break.

Lucifer looked up to meet her eyes, and he saw it there. It was dangerous, he knew, to recognize the thing eating him alive inside her too. But he couldn’t help himself.

He was up in a flash, leaving his glass on the coffee table and fumbling with his pockets for his cigarette case and lighter as he all but fled to his balcony.

Her eyes made his heart hurt inside his chest. It made him acknowledge the cold loneliness he had inside himself. Lucifer couldn’t let his despair align with hers, it would drown them both.

He tried to manage his lighter in shaky fingers, but in seconds it was clear he wouldn’t be able to make it catch fire, much less light the cigarette he was holding on his mouth. With a frustrated scream, he threw it out of the balcony and let the cigarette drop from between his lips to the floor.

He rested his forearms on the balcony rail and let his head drop down in defeat. He’d been drowning in his feelings for a couple minutes before he heard her stepping through the living room and stopping by his side.

“Lucifer.” Her voice sounded as choked as his had only minutes ago. He was compelled to raise his eyes to meet hers, and he did so warily. 

One look at her and he knew they were doomed. He knew he’d always been weak, especially when it came to his desires. But he was enthralled with the way her eyes turned the darkest of blues in the moonlight, and this yearning he felt inside him overflowed and reached out to her. Now, he could only hope she’d forgive him in the morning.

Lucifer ever so slowly lowered his lips closer to hers, eyes never leaving hers, until he had too much of it. The tension would kill him.

In a second he latched at her, their lips crashing with much more intensity than he could handle. His hands gently came to cup her face, a stark contrast to the fierceness of their kiss and the desperation that she gripped his lapels with, pulling him closer to her.

Too deep in the feel of her, Lucifer had to fight the urge of never letting her go, but he had to be certain. “Are you sure?” His rasped voice left his throat as he gasped for air, his lips ghosting over hers as he spoke, not quite able to open his eyes just yet.

Her answer was a soft lip lock that quickly morphed into a fire once their despair made itself present again.

Lucifer got lost in the way she made him feel, her body pressed so close to his. It was amazing him, the way his body seemed to fit with hers perfectly, even if he was much taller than she. 

Stunned, as he let kissing her consume him, he barely noticed her pulling him to the bed.

* * *

Lucifer woke up to the warmth of sunlight bathing his scarred back, making it tingle pleasantly. He stretched his long frame, relishing in the residual ache on his muscles. He felt a smile tug at the corners of his lips as he thought of the night before and reached out to her on his side.

But his smile was ill-fated. Lucifer forced his eyes to open and was faced with the harsh reality. Her side was empty, sheets long gone cold.

He raised himself to seat and strained to hear any noise on his penthouse, anything to signal she hadn’t abandoned him come morning. But there was no shower running, or stove on.

Lucifer collapsed back on the bed and stared at the ceiling, wondering just how much of their friendship he had ruined the night before.

* * *

Today had been one of those rare days when the booming of music down at Lux was making him sick. Lucifer had retreated to the quietness of his penthouse only a few minutes ago and now found himself lounging on his bar as he nursed a glass of scotch.

He’d been off balance since he’d left the precinct earlier in the day. Much to his surprise, everything had been particularly the same. 

_He descended the stairs with a dread to his step, fearing the Detective that was waiting for him at the end. Lucifer wasn’t sure how to behave around her since they’d finally done the deed, and since she’d left him alone after that._

_He didn’t think bringing her a coffee or a pastry would be appropriate, since it would seem like he was clinging – which he definitely was. But he was also aiming to look cool and unaffected by her early departure, and that probably meant not mentioning their night at all. He’d also figured she wouldn’t want for everyone to know, and frankly, neither did he – he’d like to keep her all to himself if he could._

_So calm and unaffected it was, but with every step he took, his coolness crumbled a little bit more. By the end of his trek to her desk, his heart was already pounding way too fast against his ribcage and his mind was already begging for any shred of attention she had to give him._

_“Morning, Detective.” He coaxed as he took a seat at his chair by her desk. He’d noticed Daniel giving him a questioning glance and cleared his throat. Cool and unaffected._

_“Hey.” She smiled at him in greeting before her eyes fell back to the document she was filling._

_It were her eyes that told him they were okay, the blue orbs glinting in late morning light. They were okay. She wouldn’t leave him behind like she had in the morning. They were okay, even if it seemed they’d never talk about what had happened ever again._

_The rest of the day had gone quite similarly, the Detective never giving him any sign he would be alone again, but him constantly worried he would, and Daniel always second glancing him._

_It had almost been a relief when he’d gotten back to Lux, but the music began making him dizzy and want to go in search of silence. Which meant he’d be alone with his thoughts again._

The ding of the elevator startled him out of his reverie and Lucifer turned to see who it was. It was safe to say he was completely baffled at witnessing the Detective walk into his penthouse.

“Detective.” He greeted her in a tone of question, both parts stunned by her presence and confused as to why she was there. “What brings you here in this fine evening?” Lucifer asked, resorting to charm to maintain his balance.

She began walking his way and his heart began beating sporadically faster as her steps brought her closer and closer to him. Until she was standing right in front of him and he couldn’t think anymore.

Lucifer got up from the barstool, the move making him stand so close to her it should be illegal. He could practically feel her body on his, with only a couple inches separating them.

The Detective simply stood before him, her eyes trailing from his chest to his own eyes. He could see the blue depths of her gaze darkening in the low light, hear the faint sound of her own heart picking up its pace, feel the barest hint of her breath on the small patch of skin the unbuttoned top of his shirt failed to cover.

All of his brain’s capacity to work on anything that wasn’t her, that wasn’t _them_ , on this very moment had escaped him a long time ago. Both dove forward at the same time, unable to hold the tension no longer.

The kiss was both the same and completely different from the one the night before. To Lucifer it felt like a breath of fresh air, an escape from constant chaos to pure peace. To him, it held a deep sense of (be)longing. But unlike the last one, it had a different edge to it. Out with the desperation and the need to feel something other than that pain, this was simple _want_.

Want to be near her, _with_ her. To feel her, to touch her, to- to… _care_ for her? And feel cared?

Dangerous path his mind was taking him. But then, again, he wasn’t thinking.

This time, he picked her up and climbed the few steps to his bedroom with the most precious thing in the world between his arms.

* * *

Lucifer closed his eyes and allowed himself to just enjoy the feeling of inner joy, and relax as he listened to the sound of heavy rain pouring down outside.

“What’s with the dork smile?” The Detective asked and he opened his eyes to regard her. She was already sitting at the edge of the bed, her back to him, putting her shirt back on. “You always get one of those after.”

“Ah, well. Stellar performances and all.” Lucifer could feel his smile tugging even more on the corners of his mouth if that was even possible. 

It was true, he’d been getting those terrible, most pathetic smiles he was sure he’d ever seen on his life, more and more these last few weeks. And how could he not, when the Detective continued to show up at his penthouse on almost all her nights off?

She gave him one last look, before letting out a chuckle and shaking her head. Lucifer let his arms spread on the bed, one of them almost falling from the mattress, and the other, if he had just the courage to do so, would be able to touch her. _If he would just stretch his fingers…_

But she got up before he could manage the courage to do it, and the sinking feeling of sleeping on a cold bed that had had her just a few minutes ago gripped at his insides all over again.

It was weird, how often he found himself in this situation nowadays. In complete bliss after being thoroughly fucked, only to have the hole inside his chest grow at the sight of her retreating back as the Detective inevitably left him alone yet again. 

This time, though, he was determined into doing something to keep her there with him for longer.

“You could stay.” He stated, letting his eyes drop down as she turned around. They inevitably rose to hers a couple seconds later, his heart hammering inside him again. The imminent rejection he recognized on her made his guts drop into an endless void.

He realized, then, that it had been a _terrible_ idea. They weren’t that. She didn’t want him to be that. She just wanted him on occasion. 

And as much as it stung, he would take anything as long as he got to keep her.

“It’s three something am, and the sky is falling down outside.” Lucifer hurried to respond before she could call them off forever. He gave her a detached look, hoping it would seem to her he was only trying to be reasonable, concerned for her wellbeing for the fact that they were merely friends – and not because he’d gotten attached. 

“We’ve just gotten back from that scene an hour ago, so we won’t have to go to the precinct until noon.” He could see her reservations wearing off of her, but just not as fast as he’d like it to. Her eyes briefly skirted to the windows and the rain flooding the streets below, and he knew she was considering staying, he just needed a bit more convincing. “Plus, we could go for a repeat performance in the morning once you’ve rested.” Lucifer finally resorted to the charm and the sex appeal, getting his cocky grin back in place, as if she was the only one that got thoroughly spent after their encounters. “I certainly wouldn’t mind.”

“Oh, _I’m_ the one that needs a rest first?” She asked back in defiance, a smile on her features that he knew meant she’d given up.

“You do seem like you need the rest. I’m not sure you could… _keep up the pace_.” Lucifer trailed of, supporting himself in his forearms as he raised from the bed, watching the Detective approach him.

“Well I’ll show you who can’t keep the pace.” She shone him a wicked smile before Lucifer found himself with her on his lap. He raised to meet her lips, but she pushed him back in bed and took control. 

To his luck, the sun would only return in a few long hours. They could play in the dark one more time.

* * *

It had been some long minutes since he’d dared her to continue their game, now. And to their surprise, he was the one who couldn’t keep up.

Lucifer had been lying on his back, watching her sleep for quite some time now and contemplating the rising sun, creeping over the grey clouds still filled with rain. He still wasn’t sure how he’d gotten her to stay, but he was glad he did.

He wasn’t sure when he’d developed these… _feelings_. They were just complications. They made him ache for her all the more, and the feel of her even better, but they also made the ache of her leaving him alone the next time all a bit more pained.

Lucifer turned to lay on his side on the bed, careful as to not wake the Detective. He waited a few moments to make sure she was still sleeping before he scooted closer to her. They were now only a few inches away, but still too many inches for his liking. He didn’t want to overstep the silent boundaries they’d created, even if she was asleep and wouldn’t notice how close he actually was.

He raised an arm and let it drape over her waist. It made him wish they would do this, too. That he could just lay down with her and be.

It was dangerous thinking, he knew, but his mind had stopped obeying his sane commands a long time ago.

* * *

He had gotten her to stay over time and time again after that night. And wasn’t that just the best thing in the world?

Lucifer opened his eyes to the most beautiful sight in the world. Chloe was still sleeping by his side, shining in the black sheets. He breathed in the morning air and let his eyes close and a smile tug on his features. Just then, he knew. It had to be Saturday. No other day could possibly feel as good as Saturdays did.

They were his favorites nowadays. Saturday mornings. When he would wake up just a little late, but still early enough to find her still sleeping by his side. When he’d been thoroughly fucked the night before and was aching in all the right places, and he could just allow himself to bask in it.

Mornings were when his hair was still a mess from her fingers running through it, when his back and chest were covered in scratches, and he’d be feeling complete blissfulness… until she inevitably left him again, and the marks she’d left on him that he savored so much would disappear.

But despite the mornings bringing him a sense of loss, they also brought one of his newfound favorite pleasures. _Morning sex_.

Lucifer just loved it. The laziness of it, the tenderness, how he could take his time with her and be soft and caring. Such a big contrast to all the fucking they did every other day.

It felt almost as if they were… _making love._

Dangerous thought, he knew, but Lucifer couldn’t help himself from wanting _more_. Of this, of them. Of _her_. He knew it was selfish of him, but he’d always been a selfish man.

He felt Chloe shift in her sleep by his side, unconsciously scooting closer to him. The soft morning rays filtered through the black drapes, making the golden of her hair shine. Lucifer let out a content sigh. He’d wake her up in a bit, for now, he just wanted to bask in the morning glow for a few more minutes.

* * *

Night had fallen on Los Angeles a couple hours ago. Lucifer was sitting at the couch on his balcony, trying in vain to see the stars.

He was having one of those days where he began questioning his choices, his relationships. His mind had been drifting to Chloe nonstop for the past few days now. He’d caught himself on more than one occasion rushing home to wait for her, eager to see the elevator doors open and her stepping out.

Maze would find it pathetic, the Lord of Hell on the back and call of a human. But the feel of her gave him a high far better than any drug ever could. The exhilarating rush that flooded him every time she touched him, how euphoric and _happy_ it made him feel, it was almost too good to be true.

But in the morning, when she’d leave him yet again, it was as if his soul would shatter just a little bit more, and she’d take a piece away with her. 

In the lonely dark, with only the stars to witness, Lucifer wondered if they should really be doing this. He’d tried to broach the subject with her once, but one look at her, just happy to be there with him, was enough to rip those thoughts away from his mind.

The thought stayed with him, though. Creeping at the corners of his consciousness. But every night when she walked through the elevator, he forgot about it. On those nights, when he’d lose himself on her, her body his favorite drug, was when he’d realize it was also the most dangerous of them all. Lucifer never thought he’d ever relinquish control of himself this freely ever again, but he’d do just anything to feel her on him one more time.

Every night she walked through the elevator, he’d get high on the feel of her, and would allow himself to forget everything else. The world didn’t exist for him beyond her. But every morning after, when Chloe would inevitably leave him again, the loneliness would creep back up his mind, and devour him whole.

But tonight wouldn’t be one of those days. Lucifer barely had control of himself anymore.

Despite how much he enjoyed being hers like this, it wasn’t the way he wanted it to be. And it was killing him little by little, seeing her leaving every morning. But at least this way he got to have her, which was better than not having her at all, he thought. Even if his feelings would leave him suffering in her absence.

He was solid on this, though. No more feeling empty, no more relinquishing control. It didn’t end well the last time he did that. Lucifer was solid on his idea when the elevator doors dinged announcing her arrival, and it crumbled away just a tiny bit.

He got up but didn’t call for her just yet, instead watching her sweep the penthouse looking for him. “Someone’s looking happy today.” He called her as he stepped back inside the living room a moment later, closing the balcony doors behind him.

The beaming smile that broke on her face was the reason he lived for lately. “You kidding? We were _amazing_ today. _That arrest…_ ” She let out a happy huff, the glow in her eyes the most beautiful thing he’d ever seen. The pride she was feeling in herself at the moment was something Lucifer wished she’d feel all the time.

“Yes, you definitely were.” He commented around a smile, taking the last few steps towards her. “I was merely there for moral support.”

She reached out to cup his cheeks and pulled his lips down to meet hers halfway. His resolve began crumbling away when they touched and she smiled into their kiss.

He wasn’t sure who began, but soon enough they were stumbling towards his bedroom. And before he could get a hold of himself, his mouth was trailing down her neck. This really wasn’t what he should be doing, but _damn_ , wasn’t this better.

“Detective…” Lucifer started, trying to jumpstart his brain into some sort of functioning degree. Chloe reached for the buttons on his shirt and it was getting harder and harder to think. “There’s… there’s something I… something I need to say.” He tried to speak, but he was already breathless before she pushed him back onto the bed.

“Now?” She asked, getting her top off before climbing the bed to straddle him.

His hands migrated to her waist almost as reflex, and Lucifer allowed himself a moment to just admire her. She reached for his wrists and pinned them above his head, trailing kisses on his exposed abdomen on her journey up to his neck.

He could feel the energy burning inside her, the fire in her eyes, and he’d be damned, but did he love it. She really was good at taking control of this, and it scared him how easily he let her.

“You really were amazing today.” He blurted out the first thing that crossed his mind. He felt her smile on his skin and a chill ran down his spine.

This was what he lived for, lately. How could he even think about losing her?

* * *

“Lucifer? You home?” Chloe’s voice called out for him, barely audible over the sound of the oil in the frying pan.

“Kitchen!” He called back at her, getting the fried fries out of the pan and putting the last batch of raw ones inside.

Lucifer could feel her getting closer better than hearing her steps. His heart picked up its pace as she neared him, and he busied himself with finishing dinner. He felt her eyes burning a path on him as she moved around the counter and took a seat, but he refused to look at her.

“What are you doing?” She inquired, her voice both parts stunned and suspicious.

“Dinner.” He replied simply, eyes still fixed on the food in front of him. Lucifer could practically feel her dismissing the idea, and he felt rushed into justifying himself. 

“You can have as much of me as you want, darling, but first we’re going to eat.” He conjured up all of the charm he could, hating how it just seemed to flee whenever she was around. Lucifer finished putting together the burgers and placed hers in front of her, hoping his charm was enough to put him out of her suspicions. “You’re going to need sustenance if you want to keep up, Detective.”

“Last I remember, you were the one who couldn’t keep up.” She remarked, but he noticed her focus changing from questioning him to the food that had been placed in front of her. She hadn’t eaten in some long hours if he recalled correctly.

“We’ll see about that.” He quipped, not wanting to stay in the bottom – ha – of that particular argument.

“Hmmm, this is good.” She complimented around a mouthful, her attention now totally focused on the burger.

He let out a low breath of relief before digging into his. He’d barely escaped her radar this time.

Lucifer could tell Chloe was closing in on all his attempts to get more time with her. Between impromptu dinners and showing up at her place to pester her or tag along with her during her day off – or taking her out with him for the day on that rare occasion she’d let him – he really wasn’t the most suave of people.

But what could he say, in the quiet normalcy of moments like those, it almost seemed like they were in a real relationship.

* * *

Lucifer blinked his eyes repeatedly, trying in vain to force the sleep out of him. No matter how much he tried to focus on the animated characters jumping on the screen, his eyelids felt like lead. 

He was almost falling back asleep when the TV turned black, flinching him back to the moment. 

“Hey.” Lucifer felt the Detective’s hand on his arm and he settled down. He turned his half functioning focus to her to find her kindly smiling at him, the same exhaustion he was feeling present in her eyes, too. “I’m going to take Trixie to bed. You can stay here, if you want. You look too exhausted to drive.”

Lucifer shone her a brief smile, still too caught up in her own and the heat of her hand in his arm to think properly. He shook his head, sending those thoughts, and the thick fog of sleep that had allowed them to come forward, away. He couldn’t think about that, not here, at her apartment, where they were only friends. 

That thought alone brought all the pain inside his chest forward, the same ache that troubled him every morning when she left. And every night when she was sleeping by his side, but still too far away for him to reach her. 

This gap between _the Detective_ , his partner, his friend, the light of his days, the one that made him feel home and accepted, and _Chloe_ , the part of her that was his, at least at night, the one that made him feel loved, that made him feel as if he belonged… it would crush him, someday. 

It was in moments like this, when she was so close to him, but still too far away for him to reach her, that made the yearning flood him again. His entire body started tingling in her presence, wanting both sides of her, his friend and his lover, to merge together in the perfect miracle that was Chloe Decker. 

Sometimes, Lucifer thought she might want that, too. But those moments were always in the most peculiar of times – when he caught her gazing at him at work, when she held him a bit tighter and closer to her when they came together, when she reached out to touch him with no apparent reason, or when she invited him to watch a movie with her and the child, like today – but there was something on all of those that held her back. That made her second guess her decision. 

Lucifer snapped out of his thoughts when he felt her hand on his shoulder, and he realized his eyelids had fallen shut one more time. 

“Here.” The Detective handed him a pillow and a blanket. Her eyes held that look, the peculiar moment, when she was maybe reconsidering leaving him to sleep on the couch, but she blinked a couple times and looked away. 

“Thank you.” He said, taking the offered items and placing them back on the couch. Lucifer proceeded to untie his shoes and take them off, but raised his eyes when he noticed her lingering by his side. 

He could see the hesitation on her features, but the Detective shook her doubts away before Lucifer could do something to finally reach out to her. “Alright, then.” She cleared her throat, nodding at herself. And once again, she’d gotten too far away from him. “Good night.”

“Good night, darling.” Lucifer watched her walk away again, his heart sinking into the endless void inside him. 

He proceeded to take off his extra layers of clothing, untucking his shirt and undoing the first couple buttons. His belt, cuffs and socks were next, and Lucifer focused on just that to avoid rowing on his pain. 

He made his makeshift bed and laid down. In the dark, it was harder to ignore the hole that had formed inside him, but tomorrow would be Saturday. Saturdays had grown on him, always bringing him a newfound sense of joy when Chloe was around. 

Lucifer closed his eyes and let himself wonder on what things the morning could bring.

* * *

“You need to leave. _Now_.” Lucifer flinched awake, the Detective’s face hovering above him as she shook him back to the land of the awakened. 

“Well, good morning to you too, my dear.” Lucifer reluctantly rose to a sitting position, rubbing a hand over his eyes and through his tousled hair to chase the sleep out of him. 

“My mom just called. She’s coming over right now.” The Detective clarified, throwing his clothes at him as she spoke. “She can’t find you here looking like this. I’ll never hear the end of it.”

“Like what?” Lucifer asked dumbfounded, his mind still half shut down with sleep. The Detective fixed him with a ‘seriously?’ glance, and he took a second to access himself. Lucifer looked as he always did, except his suit had multiple wrinkles at the moment, and half of it wasn’t on his person. His hair was probably a mess from sleep and, well, considering their recently developed evening activities, he knew what her mother would think. “Oh.”

“Yeah, _oh_.” The Detective replied sarcastically, grabbing his bicep and dragging him to the door. “You need to go.”

“Wait, you could at least let me dress first.” Lucifer interjected as she opened the door and pushed him outside. “Detective!” He tried one more time, but she simply shone him a cynical smile before she shut the door on his face. “Call me later?” Lucifer called through the door a bit louder, chucking. He could practically hear her rolling her eyes.

He breathed out, staring at the pile of clothes in his arms. The beginning of a smile began tugging at the corners of his lips, and Lucifer couldn’t bring himself to know why. 

He turned around to walk to his car, still caught up on the Detective, and didn’t see two of his friends walking his way until it was too late. 

Lucifer halted in his steps, both Daniel and Ms. Lopez staring at him, their eyes wide. His smile turned plastic as he eyed both of them, before quietly continuing his trek to his car. 

He threw his clothes inside and tidied up as best as he could. Lucifer got behind the wheel and drove off into the morning sun, not bothering to correct both his friends that the Detective and he hadn’t, in fact, slept together. At least that day, he reminded himself. He was lucky enough to still have her. 

His smile returned full force. If this was what being with the Detective felt like, Lucifer didn’t want to feel anything else. 

Saturday’s really were the best.

* * *

Her wary eyes were the first thing he noticed about her when she walked through the kitchen corridor, coming to stop just behind him on the stove. 

“What is it, darling?” Lucifer asked, putting the lid back on the pan and turning around to face her.

He let out an inaudible sigh when his eyes finally met hers. It had been a long week since the Detective had kicked him out of her house, and Lucifer hadn’t known how much he’d missed her blue orbs until they were right in front of him.

He wanted to take a step forward, reach her and put his arms around her. Feel the softness of her lips on his, the smooth curves of her body on his, the firm muscle of her thighs beneath his palms as he ran his hands all over her, desperate to feel her. 

Goosebumps ran along his skin when she set her fiery gaze on him and his arousal began pooling low in his belly.

“Dan and Ella.” She said, the fire in her gaze he adored so much giving way to suspicion. Her words brought him back to the incident meeting with those two outside her house, and Lucifer knew what was about to leave her lips before she began saying anything. “They’ve been acting really weird this past week.” The Detective commented, fishing for answers with him.

“Oh. Are they, now?” Lucifer asked, pretending to think little of the matter. He turned around to keep himself busy with the food he was cooking, afraid his eyes might give away something he didn’t intend to.

“You wouldn’t know anything about that, would you?” The Detective asked in the tone he recognized as being the one she usually used with their suspects. But Lucifer was far superior then them, he thought. He wouldn’t fall for her tricks, he already knew the game after all.

It was what he thought, at least, up until the moment the Detective stepped into his personal space, her heat lingering on the sensitive skin of his back, warming him even through his shirt. 

Her warmth was suddenly gone as she shifted to lean on the counter by his side, leaving Lucifer desperate for more of her. He’d thought about forgetting about the food and simply picking her up and carrying her to bed, but the whole point of his impromptu dinners was the dinner itself. The moment, the connection between them, the fantasy relationship.

Lucifer shook his head and focused back on his pasta for the time being. If she continued with the teasing, the anticipation would make his night with her even more pleasurable.

“Me?” He asked feigning surprise, raising his hand to cover his heart. “Lux has kept me busy this past week. Haven’t been by the precinct much lately.” He said, trying to deflect. It wasn’t particularly related to her question, but the Detective didn’t, specifically, need to know about that.

“Hmm.” She hummed in an amused tone, not buying his crappy excuse at all. Lucifer was trying to come up with something to say when it appeared the subject became irrelevant to her as her focus switched to the food he was making. The Detective leaned forward and he raised the lid, letting her inspect the pasta that was almost ready. “What are you cooking?”

“Carbonara pasta. Your favorite if I recall correctly.” Lucifer answered her with a new glow to his features, incredibly pleased at himself from remembering when he saw the shine of a pleasant surprise in her eyes. But that shine suddenly turned into suspicion, and Lucifer forced himself to backtrack. 

“It’s been a week since I’ve last properly seen you.” He said in a breathy tone, letting his eyes roam her body and thoroughly enjoying the heating inferno it caused inside him. “I thought we might as well celebrate your return.”

The Detect- Chloe let out an amused puff of laughter that Lucifer found extremely endearing. It got the humorous gleam back to her eyes, but it wasn’t enough to cover the lingering suspicion he could still find there.

“Your mother left already?” He asked before she could say anything, moving his eyes back to the food he was preparing.

“This morning.” Chloe confirmed, swiftly reaching to snatch a strip of the bacon he’d just finished frying while he was distracted. Lucifer tried to bat her hand away but without much vigor. It did funny things to his stomach, the victorious grin she sent his way.

The atmosphere around them eased to a comfortable smile as watched him cook. The attention she was giving him made him feel strangely proud of himself, especially since she seemed extremely appreciative of his cooking skills.

“Food’s looking great.” Chloe commented as Lucifer turned off the stove, pasta already cooked and ready for the sauce. Lucifer was about to reach for the eggs for the sauce when he turned around to watch her and noticed her knowing gaze. “How about desert?”

He took a step towards her, placing the dishtowel over his shoulder before boxing her back on the counter, a hand at each side of her to keep her there.

“Well, I have something else in the menu for that.” Lucifer shared, ghosting his lips on the shell of her ear, feeling his voice rumble inside his chest. His low, deep tone, carried with a heavy British accent, made her shiver, and he pressed closer to feel all of her on him. 

The tension between them was palpable, and then it was gone. Chloe reached up, tangling her hands in his hair and pulling at it, bringing his head down to crash her lips to his. Lucifer felt his whole body respond in a second, and he picked her up and placed her on the counter, his hands splayed on her back, trying to push them as close together as physically possible.

The kiss stole his breath away. Her tongue curling around his made his head light and if he wasn’t leaning on the counter or had been holding her up, they’d both be on the ground by then, so wobbly his legs felt.

Lucifer growled, low and deep, into her mouth when she ran her nails down his back and chest. It was getting hard to keep himself controlled, but messy sex on the kitchen counter wasn’t exactly what he had pictured for the night, nor how Chloe deserved to be treated.

So, he forced himself to slow down, focusing more on her than on the desperate need he carried inside himself. It had been a _long_ week, a week where he thought he’d go mad from abstinence from her presence.

Lucifer hadn’t been able to sleep properly, or think properly, or live properly. His mind always focused on her. He’d come to crave her company, her smile, how she made him feel, who she made him want to be, more than he thought was ever possible.

Chloe broke their kiss and Lucifer took in a large breath, feeling his lungs burning from the lack of air. When he dared to open his eyes, he found her deep blue ones staring right back at him, so full of emotion it made it even harder for him to breathe.

She pressed her forehead to his, and a huge smile began spreading across both their features.

“Will it suffice?” Lucifer asked, his voice deliciously breathy and raw. The hearty laugh Chloe let out was easily the most beautiful sound he’d ever heard in his entire life.

* * *

The gravelly path that lead to Mila Koriandr’s house creaked under their shoes as Lucifer and the Detective made their way to the front door.

It was a typical LA afternoon. The sun was up in the sky, its light warming the air to pleasant degrees. A breeze was constant around them, blowing softly on the trees, making the leaves rustle. The sky was of an electric blue without a single cloud in sight.

The atmosphere around the Detective and him had been just as calming, at least when they weren’t at work. After clocking so many intense work hours the past couple of weeks with back to back cases, the following Saturdays had been some of the best they’d ever gotten together.

Chloe had stayed for breakfast on those two occasions, and they’d moved to her house after for even nicer afternoons, just enjoying each other as friends.

It had been all he’d wanted, and Lucifer had thought that maybe it was what she wanted too, to close this gap between friends and lovers. He’d felt like she was testing them on the first time, to see how he’d get at all the domesticity. To his surprise, it had been quite pleasant, and the feeling of her watching his reactions had passed in no time. 

The second time around, Lucifer wasn’t preoccupied with trying to mend the gap between the two sides of her, he was just glad to be there. And if he’d left maybe thinking the rift between lover and friend wasn’t that thick or that it simply didn’t matter all that much… It was all just a big bonus.

They climbed the few short steps to the front door and Lucifer let out a sigh. He raised his finger to ring the doorbell, but the Detective stopped him with a hand on his arm.

“Remember: We’re here to tell Ms. Koriandr about our recent discoveries and warn her that she might be a potential victim, but we don’t want to scare her too much.” The Detective instructed one more time, and Lucifer shone her a confidant smile.

Talking to the surviving victims and the family of the deceased ones wasn’t his favorite part by far, but Lucifer recognized the importance of the task, and the impact it caused on both the victims and the detectives doing it.

“No need to worry, Detective. I’ll try to euphemize my words.” The Detective rolled her eyes for the briefest of seconds, stepping away from the serious persona she put up to this kind of task for a bare second. 

He knew it was particularly hard for her informing the family of a murder victim, especially since she’d been on the other side of it. So Lucifer grinned, proud of himself for distracting her, even if for just a few fleeting seconds, of the hard task ahead of them.

He raised his hand one more time to ring the doorbell, but his nose caught onto something and he forced himself to stop.

“Do you smell that?” Lucifer asked, shifting around to try to pinpoint what it was that he had caught on. The Detective seemed to have sensed that as well, and began her own search of it. His nostrils burned when the change of the wind brought a puff of the sent directly at them, and his mind clicked. “Is that…?” He began tentatively, not wanting to be right.

“Gasoline…” She completed his thought, both their eyes widening in sync.

Lucifer reached for the doorknob at the same time the Detective reached for her gun, but while the lock simply opened under his touch, her firearm stayed put by her side. It was probably for the best to avoid gunpowder and spark-igniting bullets inside a house drenched in gasoline.

They stepped in slowly, looking through the first floor rooms of the huge house without finding traces of Mila Koriandr, their murderous arsonist, Mick Tanner, or the fire being lit. 

The wooden steps of the main stairway began creaking as they approached, the smell of gasoline even stronger than before. Lucifer froze when they stepped into the room to find their arson artist climbing down the steps with a blowtorch in hand. 

“LAPD!” The Detective yelled, startling the arsonist to their presence. “Freeze!” She tried again, pretending to reach for her gun when the man shifted, lighting the blowtorch.

The world slowed down as Lucifer’s eyes widened. “No!” He yelled, but it was too late. Mick Tanner had already thrown the blowtorch down the stairs.

His first instinct was to reach for the Detective. He tackled her down to the ground, behind the door they’d just passed through. The atmosphere around them exploded, a raging tower of flames rising just where they had been standing. Lucifer felt the fire licking his back as it spread in a blast, barely catching them as they ducked away from it.

He focused on covering the Detective with himself as another explosion went off. It echoed inside his mind, making his ears ring. 

Lucifer felt her moving beneath him, and he forced himself to get off of her. The Detective was quick on her feet, getting up in a flash. Him, on the other hand, when he tried to get up, the house started spinning, and Lucifer had to hold onto the wall to stop himself from falling again.

His forehead started throbbing, and his fingers came out red after he touched it. The last thing he needed was a concussion to make things worse.

The Detective didn’t seem to notice his lack of balance, though. Instead, she had been focused on staring at the stairwell while pressing the sleeve of her shirt to her nose. Lucifer didn’t have the same difficulty to breathe as her. Hell had been much the same, the air saturated with smoke and ash and hot as only It could be.

He saw her inching forward, ready to run into the fire, and his heart began beating out of control. Lucifer reached to place a hand at her arm to stop her, boring his desperate eyes on hers to convince her to stay.

“He’s getting away.” He barely heard her voice over the sound of the flames before she began coughing. It made his worry grow even more, but before he could say anything, the Detective dashed forward, making her way through a wall of flames. “ _Dispatch, this is Detective Decker requesting backup units and the fire department at my location ASAP!_ ”

Calling for backup was the last thing he heard from her before she disappeared into the fire. Lucifer took in a deep breath and stilled himself. It was backup she had called for, and that was him. 

He began taking the same path as she did, but the flames were exponentially larger than they had been before. Still, he soldiered through. He was the Devil, after all. Simple flames couldn’t stop him.

But they did seem able to burn him. Lucifer felt the flames on his skin on more than a few occasions, and had to stop twice to put out the ones on his sleeve.

Another blast went off, and he had to hurry to duck behind a wall. It was too hot to the touch and it burned his back when he leaned on it to protect himself from the blast. Lucifer could hear the structure cracking, and he realized he had to find the Detective and get the hell out of there as fast as possible.

With the path he was heading now blocked, Lucifer turned to the next exit he could find, stepping through a collapsed wall. That led him back to the stair room. He tried the door they’d entered the first place, but soon enough fire was blazing through that as well.

Lucifer chanced a look around, finding fire covering all possible exits. His coughing fits began then, the smoke constricting his throat and making his eyes water. He pulled up what was left of his sleeve and covered his nose the same way the Detective had. By then, he could only hope she’d been luckier than him and had found a way out already.

He was contemplating busting through a wall when he heard the stairwell steps creaking. The smoke was too thick on the ceiling for him to see anything until it was too late. Lucifer hurried to the base of the steps to catch Mila as she stumbled down.

“ _Help…_ ” She whispered, her wheezy voice failing.

He gathered her in his arms and they stumbled away. The smoke began flowing down from the ceiling to the floor, and if what he’d seen from firefighter TV shows were true, they needed to be out of that house now.

Lucifer threw his ragged jacket above her and picked her up. Feeling necessity topping logic, he ran through a wall of fire and back to the path the Detective and he had done when entering.

He was barely out of the front door when flashover occurred and the house blew. Lucifer and Mila fell to the ground, the sound of the explosion sending his mind spinning again. 

He thought he’d heard the Detective call his name, and Lucifer rushed to stand. Paramedics materialized by his side immediately, catching him before his balance crumbled and pushing him towards one of the ambulances.

The police sirens together with his hazy mind built for a foggy memory. The only thing Lucifer could focus on was the Detective.

She’d been talking to other officers, checking around the burning house, and generally lurking around the ambulances. But her eyes never fell on him.

He’d hoped she’d be worried about him, checking him, speaking with the medics to see if he’d be alright. Just generally worrying, like she’d been before.

What he didn’t expect to witness was her apparent disinterest. And Lucifer felt all the loneliness from the mornings when she left him alone creeping back up again.

Watching her talk to everyone but not acknowledge him had hurt more than he could ever imagine. He felt hollow inside, and he wondered if this was the last drop Chloe needed to dump him.

Hell, it felt like he’d already lost her. 

Amidst the busyness of the crime scene and the lack of interest from the Detective, Lucifer felt completely invisible. So, he decided to leave, and to add even more to his misery, it appeared that no one noticed his absence.

* * *

The glass was cool in his hand and Lucifer sighed into the empty penthouse. The couch, so soft, seemed to want to envelope him whole, but it would never be as soft as her arms had been.

He was alone, in the dark, miserable, checking the burns he’d sustained during the house fire a couple hours ago. Some redness here and there, some burnt hairs, his ruined suit. Nothing too dire since he’d begun healing. After all, she wasn’t around to slow his recovery. 

It hurt, thinking about her. About how her eyes hadn’t met his since he’d escaped the fire, eyes that he knew were always carried with emotion and that always shined when he was around.

It made him feel cold and alone, things he hadn’t felt before when she was concerned. She’d always made him feel cared, and accepted, and warm and fuzzy on the inside. It was hard even thinking otherwise, but she hadn’t looked at him…

Lucifer felt his insides twisting, his heart constricting, and he took a big gulp from the scotch he was nursing. It burned a path down his throat, warming his stomach, but it was nothing compared to the warmth she’d caused on him so many times.

He sighed and leaned back on the couch, closing his eyes, and tried to figure out what he’d do with his life now.

The elevator dinged announcing its arrival, but Lucifer barely registered the noise. A dull ache returned to the few burns he’d sustained and it lightened him about who it was that had arrived. He didn’t dare turn around to face her, it’d be easier for him this way.

“Lucifer?” Chloe called, or the Detective called, or- he wasn’t sure. He’d thought before that maybe she hadn’t separated herself from him like he’d thought at first, that maybe she’d always been his friend and his lover at the same time, but he could see now that he was wrong.

Lucifer didn’t know which one to expect, his friend, possibly worried about his wellbeing – which she hadn’t been at the crime scene – or his lover, there to break up with him – which, again, she hadn’t demonstrated interest in doing so before.

She could be there to do both as well. Scold him for his recklessness at the fire and then break his heart.

The dichotomy that was Chloe Decker was making his head spin. He didn’t know what to expect and how to behave, so he decided to play it cold, pretend he didn’t care and spare them both the heartache.

He heard her take a hesitant step forward, the heels of her boots clicking on the marble floor. She took another step after a long second, but it seemed to be a step back, and then he took another. 

Lucifer suddenly felt his heart racing inside him at the prospect of her leaving. It was what he had expected, or thought he did, but it wasn’t what he wanted. It was a possibility, but he hadn’t actually thought she’d go through with it, that maybe it was all his catastrophic mind. It didn’t seem to be the case.

If this was the last time they got together, he couldn’t let it end like this.

He turned around a bit desperately, hoping she wouldn’t be inside the elevator by then, but what he saw wasn’t what he was expecting at all. There were dried tear tracks on her cheeks, her eyes were red rimmed and she had her arms wrapped tightly around herself.

She seemed small, something that didn’t fit her at all. And Lucifer knew he had promised to act cold and spare the pain, but one look at her and that fled his mind.

He got up from the sofa and took a single step towards her, watching her mind trying to decide between fight and flight. “What’s wrong, darling?” He asked as softly as he could, and he could tell it broke her just a tiny bit more. 

Her hurried steps echoed through the marble, and she came to a stop in front of him. Her hands began hovering just above his body, silently inspecting him for injuries, and the mere heat from them was enough to make his muscles clench. 

She pressed her hands to his chest and left out a wobbly breath. Lucifer thought to reach out to her to keep her steady, hold her before she lost her strength and fell to the ground, but she backed away before he could. She took a few steps back and crossed her arms again, her eyes trained in the floor.

He was left missing her hands, and her eyes, and the comfort only she could provide.

“ _Chloe…_ ” Lucifer called her by her given name, the one he saved, and savored, for when it was just the two of them. He didn’t care about the duality anymore. He could see that it had always been _her _, since the beginning.__

__But the sound of her given name made her crumble._ _

__A sob escaped her lips and her body trembled. Lucifer wanted to reach out to her, but he didn’t know if it would be welcome._ _

__“You wouldn’t come out.” She said through the lump on her throat, and he furrowed his brows. When she finally raised her eyes to his, they were filled with tears. “The house was _going up in flames_ , and it was _exploding_ , and I got out with the arsonist, and then the fire department was there, but they wouldn’t go in because it was _exploding_ and _you wouldn’t come out!_ ” She looked desperate by then, but Lucifer didn’t know what to do._ _

__So he did the one thing that felt right for him. He reached out to her, but she took another step back, drying a stray tear that escaped her eyes and shaking her head. But her look was conflicted, so he tried again, and this time she let him._ _

__Lucifer fell back to the couch pulling her down with him to straddle his legs. Chloe leaned down on his chest despite all the soot that covered him. Her arms sneaked around his waist and she hid her face on the crook of his neck. He wrapped his arms tightly around her in return, burying his nose on her neck and taking in her sent, while comforting words dropped from his lips._ _

__Lucifer didn’t know how long he held her for. It was long enough for his arms to star going numb, but he didn’t dare moving them. He’d tried to think what it must have felt like for her. Watching a burning building collapsing with her still inside and unable to do anything about it._ _

__His mind protested the very thought, and his insides clenched, making him feel sick. An illusion of panic took control of his brain and Lucifer tightened his arms around Chloe instinctively. He felt shaken to his very core, and it was only the thought of it and not the real thing._ _

__But after feeling that, he came to the conclusion he never wanted to find out._ _

__He’d taken to run his fingers through strands of her hair to send the horrible feeling away. It seemed to calm her down as much as it calmed him. When Chloe sat up straight, he was left missing her weight. She tried to get out of his lap and into some semblance of normalcy, but Lucifer didn’t let her. He wrapped his arms loosely around her, letting his fingers twine behind her back._ _

__Chloe pressed her hands to his chest again and let out a tired sigh. The look in her eyes wasn’t devoid of emotion as Lucifer had originally thought it would be. He’d thought at first that she was there to dump him, but what he found on her eyes was the same thing he knew he had in his._ _

__She wouldn’t dump him, because it seemed she’d gotten attached as well._ _

__“I’m sorry I didn’t check on you at the scene.” Chloe apologized, drying a couple insistent tears from her cheeks. “I didn’t want to break down in front of everyone.” She let out a self-conscious laugh that made a lone tear escape from her blue eyes._ _

__“It’s alright, love. I understand.” Lucifer reached out and dried it, letting his hand linger on her cheek for a few seconds._ _

__She dropped her eyes to her hands on his chest, and her fingers began moving in a slow caress. It brought him a sense of peace, and Lucifer tried very hard not to purr, but he was so glad they were okay that a purr or two might have escaped his lips after all._ _

__Chloe stopped suddenly, and he immediately opened his eyes to protest. She locked eyes with him, and the determination in them rendered him speechless. “If we’re going to do this,” she said, gesturing between them both, and Lucifer thought his heart would stop working. “Then you have to be more careful.”_ _

__“Wait, you- you mean…” He blinked repeatedly, thinking he must have imagined things. _She wasn’t- she couldn’t be…__ _

__Or could she?_ _

__“You actually want to… _with me_?” Lucifer asked, needing to hear the confirmation, but he couldn’t quite bring himself to say the words lest he’d gotten them wrong after all. But when she shone him a small, unsure smile, he felt like the happiest Devil in the world._ _

__“Yeah, dumbass.” Chloe said happily, and he couldn’t stop his own smile. “And we kind of already are.” She quipped back, and he furrowed his brows, lost on her meaning. “You think I haven’t noticed all your dating attempts?”_ _

__Lucifer felt a sudden blush creeping up his neck, reaching as far as the tips of his ears. He thought he must have looked ridiculous, but he liked the way it had made Chloe laugh._ _

__She’d seen right through his plans after all. And she hadn’t done a thing to discourage him._ _

__“Why now?” The question left his lips before Lucifer even knew what he was about to say, but it seemed like the right thing to ask. He wanted to know what had changed to make her act when she did._ _

__“I just can’t deny it anymore. Trust me, I’ve been trying.” Chloe let out a strangled laugh, letting her eyes drift away for a second before forcing them back to his. “I don’t want to waste time living in a lie, but I can’t take another broken heart.” Her eyes were set deep inside his, their blue shining with a painful truth._ _

__Lucifer knew she had suffered more than it ought to be fair. He had had his fair share of pain as well, but he couldn’t promise what he desperately wanted to. It wouldn’t be the truth, and the Devil never lied._ _

__“I promise you, I’ll try to be more careful.” He said slowly, weary. Her eyes softened at his words, but not enough. They were still insistent on his, waiting for the words still stuck inside his mouth. “I can’t promise I won’t ever hurt you, but I do promise it will never me my intention to do so.”_ _

__“That’s all I can ask for.”_ _

__She laid back down on his chest after a shared smile, and Lucifer felt truly blissed. And maybe it wasn’t a Saturday morning, but Friday nights could feel just as great as well. And tomorrow would be Saturday, after all. Who knew what it would bring._ _

__“You stink of smoke.” Chloe said, breaking him out of his thoughts._ _

__“Oh really? I hadn’t noticed.” Lucifer replied sarcastically, enjoying the way her chuckles made his chest vibrate along with hers._ _

__He felt her shifting and lessened the strength of his embrace to let her rise. Chloe raised a hand and cupped his cheek, running her thumb on his jaw to wipe out some soot. It made him feel warm and bubbly on the inside._ _

__But his peaceful warmth turned into something a little bit more when a wicked little idea crossed through his mind. Well, he wouldn’t be the Devil if it hadn’t._ _

__“Want to help me shower it off?”_ _

**Author's Note:**

> Thank you all for reading <3  
> Comments and kudos highly appreciated.
> 
> You can find me on tumblr here  
> Come say hi ;)


End file.
